Cutback management is a way of life for most public and private sector organizations today, and the factors leading to its presence are expected to be felt well into the 1990's and beyond. At the same time, organizations are being faced with a changed internal culture where employees want and need to be involved in decisions that affect them. The author, who has been at the forefront of assisting organizations in effectively managing both external and internal change, explores the trends impacting state and local governments in the next decade and beyond, describes the cutback management environment that policy and decision makers face, and lays out effective approaches to deal with this environment from the bottom of the organization upward. In this manner, organizations that identify techniques to improve revenues and reduce costs can find lasting solutions that are accepted at all organizational levels.

After reviewing the 15 major trends expected to impact state and local governments during the 1990's and beyond, the author describes the cutback management environment being faced by most state and local governments. He then describes in detail how to set a direction to address the cutback management environment through the application of strategic planning and goes on to describe how to organize around critical success factors in order to focus resources on achievement of the organizational mission in light of external and internal environmental factors. He explores various techniques for improving employee productivity, ranging from the use of new technology to better management systems to various types of employee involvement. He then discusses the importance of values in the achievement of a shared organizational vision and describes various employee involvement processes that can be used to secure buy-in by employees at all levels where organizational changes are underway. Among other issues explored in depth are the use of matrix management to improve productivity in a project-oriented environment and contingency planning to deal with unforeseen events. The book culminates with a description of how to use strategic management as a day-to-day tool for effective bottom-up cutback management, and provides real-life case situations of how state and local governments are effectively dealing with the cutback and involvement processes. This book is aimed at state and local government policy and decision makers.

Designed for local government managers and administrators, this pioneering work offers a clear and comprehensive guide to the use of strategic planning techniques in the public sector. The author presents a concise overview of the strategic planning process, defines the terms involved, and provides a step-by-step methodology for organizations ready to move into the actual implementation of strategic planning. In addition to differentiating between community-based, corporate, functional, and defined-purpose strategic planning processes, Mercer explains the delineation between strategic and tactical planning and offers practical approaches to overcoming barriers to the use of strategic planning in the public sector arena. Throughout, the author makes extensive use of case studies of strategic planning programs implemented by a variety of local government and public sector organizations.

Mercer begins by describing how strategic planning can be both an effective tool for dealing with change and a technique of organizational development. He goes on to provide detailed instructions on how to prepare to conduct strategic planning, how to determine strategic issues, the importance of a values audit, and how to develop an environmental scan or assessment. Subsequent chapters address determining organizational threats and opportunities, composing the mission statement, defining critical success factors and indicators, planning strategies, and assessing strategic risks and benefits. Finally, the author shows how to perform an internal assessment of ability to actually adopt and carry out strategies, the importance of contingency planning, and how to tie strategic planning to the budget and evaluate the process. The public sector manager experienced with strategic planning techniques can use the guide as a handy reference to particular aspects of the process, while those new to strategic planning will find this an indispensable aid in developing and implementing their own internal strategic planning processes.

This book presents psychological assessment and intervention in a cultural and relational context. A diverse range of contributors representing six continents and eleven countries write about their therapeutic interventions, all of which break the traditional assessor-as-expert-oriented framework and offer a creative adaptation in service delivery. A Collaborative/Therapeutic Assessment model, including work with immigrant communities, and Indigenous modalities underscore individual and collective case illustrations highlighting equality in the roles of the provider and the receiver of services. The universality and uniqueness of culture are explored as a construct and through case material. Some chapters describe a partnership with a Eurocentric scientific model, while others adopt a purely community method, preserved with Indigenous language and subjective methodology. This volume brings together diverse therapeutic collaborative ideas, and recognizes relational, community, and cultural psychologies as integral to mainstream assessment and intervention literature. This book is essential for psychologists and clinicians internationally and graduate students.

This book presents psychological assessment and intervention in a cultural and relational context. A diverse range of contributors representing six continents and eleven countries write about their therapeutic interventions, all of which break the traditional assessor-as-expert-oriented framework and offer a creative adaptation in service delivery. A Collaborative/Therapeutic Assessment model, including work with immigrant communities, and Indigenous modalities underscore individual and collective case illustrations highlighting equality in the roles of the provider and the receiver of services. The universality and uniqueness of culture are explored as a construct and through case material. Some chapters describe a partnership with a Eurocentric scientific model, while others adopt a purely community method, preserved with Indigenous language and subjective methodology. This volume brings together diverse therapeutic collaborative ideas, and recognizes relational, community, and cultural psychologies as integral to mainstream assessment and intervention literature. This book is essential for psychologists and clinicians internationally and graduate students.

This book illuminates the process of child psychological assessment in community psychology through discussion, theory, and case studies of collaborative, systemic treatment of children and their parents. "Assessing Children in the Urban Community" presents a semi-structured form of collaborative psychological assessment, designed to help clients gain new insights and make changes in their lives. Traditional psychological assessment focuses on diagnosis and treatment but has been slow to include contextual elements, particularly social and cultural contexts into the assessment process and psychological report. Clients receiving services in a community psychology clinic pay for their treatment through state welfare coverage. They cannot choose their providers, they cannot always determine the length and course of their mental health care, they often do not have access to transportation to begin services, to continue them, or to take advantage of follow-up recommendations. The Therapeutic Assessment model is particularly adaptable to community psychology because it allows maximum interaction in the assessment process and promotes participation and collaboration in an often dis-empowering system. This book will be relevant to clinical psychologists, community psychologists, social workers, family therapists, graduate students in psychology, social work, marriage and family therapists, and counseling programs.

This book is the first comprehensive volume on the computer simulation of plant development. It contains a full account of the algorithms used to model plant shapes and developmental processes, Lindenmayer systems in particular. With nearly 50 color plates, the spectacular results of the modelling are vividly illustrated. "This marvelous book will occupy an important place in the scientific literature." #Professor Heinz-Otto Peitgen# "The Algorithmic Beauty of Plants will perform a valuable service by popularizing this enlightening and bewitching form of mathematics." #Steven Levy# " ... the garden here is full of delights and an excellent introduction to L-systems, ..." #Alvy Ray Smith, IEEE Computer Graphics and its Applications#

This book illuminates the process of child psychological assessment in community psychology through discussion, theory, and case studies of collaborative, systemic treatment of children and their parents. "Assessing Children in the Urban Community" presents a semi-structured form of collaborative psychological assessment, designed to help clients gain new insights and make changes in their lives. Traditional psychological assessment focuses on diagnosis and treatment but has been slow to include contextual elements, particularly social and cultural contexts into the assessment process and psychological report. Clients receiving services in a community psychology clinic pay for their treatment through state welfare coverage. They cannot choose their providers, they cannot always determine the length and course of their mental health care, they often do not have access to transportation to begin services, to continue them, or to take advantage of follow-up recommendations. The Therapeutic Assessment model is particularly adaptable to community psychology because it allows maximum interaction in the assessment process and promotes participation and collaboration in an often dis-empowering system. This book will be relevant to clinical psychologists, community psychologists, social workers, family therapists, graduate students in psychology, social work, marriage and family therapists, and counseling programs.

An authoritative how-to guide that explains every aspect of science proposal writing This fully revised edition of the authoritative guide to science proposal writing is an essential tool for any researcher embarking on a grant or thesis application. In accessible steps, the authors detail every stage of proposal writing, from conceiving and designing a project to analyzing data, synthesizing results, estimating a budget, addressing reviewer comments, and resubmitting. This new edition is updated to address changes and developments over the past decade, including identifying opportunities and navigating the challenging proposal-funding environment. The only how-to book of its kind, it includes exercises to help readers stay on track as they develop their grant proposals and is designed for those in the physical, life, environmental, biomedical, and social sciences, as well as engineering.

TRANSFORM YOUR FAVORITE NOVEL INTO YOUR PERSONAL WRITING COACH Have you ever run up against a story problem that made you want to beat your head against a wall, wishing for a way to correctly diagnose and treat it? Is a manuscript lying paralyzed in a desk drawer somewhere, waiting for a broken conflict to be mended? Do you long to line your characters up in front of an X-ray machine so you can peer inside them? Maybe it's time to call in a consulting team of "specialists," experts in their field who've been there, done that, and have the published novels (and reader fan base) to prove it. Consider your favorite authors as doctors who, for the price of their novels, can be called at any time to provide insights into a difficult case. This book will empower you to- Analyze any novel, movie, or television episode for insights into plot, conflict, and character development. Track the four throughlines that make engaging stories multidimensional. Master the eight sequences and turning point events that infuse stories with meaningful change. Identify the eight archetypes that "show, don't tell" theme. Recognize the three different types of character arcs and nine unique personalities that define character growth. Understand the five empathy elements that win reader identification. Enjoy examples drawn from modern bestsellers and timeless classics. BONUS: in-depth analyses of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy novel, The Hobbit, and the blockbuster romantic comedy, While You Were Sleeping. Includes original, easy-to-understand diagrams and helpful charts available as handy printable versions online.

Autobiography of a WW II vet from his childhood in Utah through service as an artilleryman in the European Theater, raising a family in the 50's and helping build the aerospace industry in California.

Refreshing insights into popular, well-loved Scripture passages. Each lesson offers a biblical basis for facing life's decisions and encourages a deeper personal faith. Contains 26scripture passages for study that may be studied in any order. Appropriate for use in groups or individual study. Volumes may be studies in any order. Each lesson has approximately three pages of reading that can be completed during a personal devotional time. For a complete listing of scriptures click the Leader's Guide below. separate Leader's Guide9780687071692"

This leader's guide gives for each lesson: a purpose statement, Bible background, and sections on beginning the lesson, developing the lesson, concluding the lesson and a prayer. In the developing the lesson section you will help class members look at how the scriptures were heard in Bible times, how we hear them today and how members can apply them to their life. Sessions: Genesis 2:4b-3:24Adam and Eve Genesis 6-9The Flood Genesis 28:10-22Jacob's Ladder Genesis 37-45; 50:15-21Joseph Exodus 12:1-39The First Passover Numbers 6:22-27The Benediction 2 Samuel 7The Unconditional Covenant Job 19:25-27My Redeemer Lives Psalm 121My Help Comes From the Lord Psalm 139Where Can I Go From Your Spirit Isaiah 40:1-11A Voice in the Wilderness Isaiah 40:12-31Wings Like Eagles Micah 6:6-8What Does the Lord Require? Matthew 1:18-2:12When Jesus Was Born Matthew 6:1-15The Lord's Prayer Mark 2:1-12Forgiveness of Sins Mark 14:12-25The Last Supper Luke 4:16-30 Jesus Fulfills the Prophecy Luke 10:25-37The Good Samaritan Luke 15:11-32The Waiting Father John 1:1-18The Coming of the Word John 10:1-18The Good Shepherd Acts 2:1-36The Day of Pentecost Philippians 2:1-11The Mind of Christ Hebrews 11:1-3; 12:1-3Faith and Witnesses Revelation 7:9-17The Church Triumphant in Heaven Each session contains: Words for Bible Times (how the scriptures were heard) Words for Our Time (how we hear them today) Words for My Life (how we apply them to our life)

separate Student Book #9780687071791 26 sessions / 45-60 minutes"